In an effort to keep retailers from selling Anderson's hardwood flooring products at too low a price, the company has issued a new advertising policy. Covering advertising in a range of media including television, radio, print and the Internet, the policy requires that advertisers meet "a minimum advertised price" to participate.
"Anderson does not want to restrict any retailer in any media from a sales opportunity, but we feel it is critical to continue to protect our luxury brand position and support retailers that invest in our products by allowing a profit to be earned”, said Jeff Sills, Anderson’s COO, of the new policy.
The policy is designed to end the practice of some retailers who sell Anderson flooring as a loss leader, particularly online. "Our new policy allows each retailer the opportunity to earn a fair profit without dealing with predatory pricing and ‘bait and switch’ tactics during the shopping process,” explained John Patterson, Anderson's vp sales.
Bob Eady, vp of Anderson distributor T and L Distributing, based in Houston, said he was glad to see a new policy in place. “Our sales staff and management team has been dealing with advertised prices, particularly on the Internet, that make no sense and can’t even cover a retailer’s minimum operating cost," he said. "The new policy will allow our retailers and sale team to focus their energy on proactive sales initiatives verses addressing reactive calls dealing with low advertised prices which are outside our control."
Don Herndon, of Melbourne, Fla.-based Classic Wood Flooring, echoed his sentiments. "Recently the Anderson brands have gained so much popularity the brand was frequently used by some, particularly Internet retailers, as a pricing leader with no intention of ever selling it. The new policy allows Classic to continue to sell the best the wood floor industry has to offer, providing our customers with a superior product and Classic earns an acceptable margin,” he noted.
Anderson said it is quickly addressing any comments regarding the new policy. “Currently, we are receiving several inquires per week from the industry regarding companies violating the policy”, Sills said. “Each company is individually contacted by our distributor and in some cases an Anderson associate to inform the Advertisers of the policy guidelines. We will impose the full restriction outlined in the policy to any advertiser not in compliance with the program."
A copy of the policy can be obtained from any Anderson distributor or by contacting Anderson Floors directly. For more information visit, www.andersonfloors.com.
